April 14, 2000

Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital and Hanger Inc., manufacturer of prosthetics and orthotics for adults and children, will hold bi-monthly pediatric amputee clinics beginning this month. The first clinic of its kind in the Boston area, the pediatric amputee clinic will include specialists in pediatric medicine, rehabilitation and prosthetics to assist children who have experienced limb loss. "The clinic also will serve as an educational and support group resource for parents, families and children who are facing the psychological and emotional issues associated with limb loss," says Kelley Drane-Fleming, OT, ambulatory services supervisor at Spaulding.

The major reasons for limb loss in children in the United States are trauma, cancer and prenatal-acquired amputation. Every year in this country, there are 20,000 new upper extremity amputations and 80,000 lower extremity amputations. Approximately 25 percent of these amputations affect children.

The first clinic session was held April 4, and subsequent dates are scheduled for June 6, Aug. 1, Oct. 3 and Dec. 5. Pediatric specialists will include, a physiatrist, a pediatric orthopaedic surgeon, a prosthetist, a physical therapist and an occupational therapist.

According to Donna Nimec, MD, director of Pediatric Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation at Spaulding, the clinic is a much-needed resource for eastern Massachusetts. "The clinics will be a central location for children and families dealing with limb loss to work out lots of different issues," she says. "For example, many insurance companies will cover the cost of only one prosthesis per person in a lifetime, but a growing child may need a new prosthesis approximately every nine months. One of the roles of the case managers at the clinic will be to help families in need seek funding for additional prostheses." Nimec also points out that many of these children want to play sports or participate in other activities. The clinic will be helpful in finding ways for these children to adapt to any type of activity imaginable.

"Working together, we will transform the dream of this clinic into a reality for the benefit of the children of eastern New England and, we hope, a model for other centers of excellence around the country," says Jack Patterson, Hangar’s business development manager.

For more information about the clinic, call Kelley Drane-Fleming at (617) 573-2147.